Good morning Making Space for God friends! This morning I was thinking about my friend whose mother suddenly died. And then my thoughts went to my own parents who quickly had a change in their health (seemed like overnight).  Sometimes when we least expect it, things happen. But what really caught my attention is that sometimes (not always) there are signs that change is in the wind. This is what I want to address today. When we have a sense about something what do we do about it? And as Christians, we need to recognize that as we daily pray for guidance, it is the Holy Spirit who guides and directs our paths. In light of this, let’s delve into this subject of trusting your instinct.

When my grandfather was about to die (and we had no signs of this whatsoever at the time), he said to me, “Joanne, I am going to die.” Now that was quite a statement for a young woman. I was driving and stopped the car. I thought to myself, “How could he know this”? But he did and a few weeks later he died.

Yesterday, I was with a friend, Dolores, attending another friend’s funeral, and during the funeral she mentioned that her mother was not well.  That afternoon I was obsessed with thinking about her mother. I had a keen sense that it was not good. I prayed all afternoon. The next morning her mother went to be with Jesus.

Now many of you know that I put my trust completely in Jesus. I not only don’t believe in crystal balls or reading tarot cards or whatever else people do to get information from another source, I think it is harmful and misleading.  As Christians, our source of information is the Holy Spirit. So what do we do when we think we are hearing something or have a sense about something?  Here are some practical things I do to discern if this is God speaking to me.

• I ask the Holy Spirit if this is Him talking to me. This seems like a no-brainer, however you would be surprised at the people I suggest this to who say, ” What a great idea!”
• I ask a few of my trusted friends to pray about it
• If it is God speaking, He will not contradict Himself. The Word is my source of instruction
• If I am not sure, sometimes I wait; other times I step out in faith and take action. My philosophy is I am better off stepping out in faith and taking a risk when I have a strong sense about something or I could miss an opportunity.

Let me be clear, these are not practical steps I use when I am making a significant life decision such as a job change, marriage, finances and the like. I am less likely to step out and take a risk on simply a yellow light in these cases. I am referring to the times when we have a “sense” about something such as I described in this blog and in a previous blog I wrote called The Regret Stealer.  I truly believe that what I call holy nudges are promptings of the Lord to engage us in His activity on earth.

Would love to hear about some holy nudges you have had! Blessings and much love.